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Monday, December 8, 2014

How to Succeed in the Pentagon (By Trying Very, Very Hard)

Gen Douglas MacArthur in 1930

When it came to crawling up the butts of superiors who were
in a position to do him some good, Gen. Douglas MacArthur was determined to be
second to none. MacArthur could have put J. Pierrepont Finch
to shame in his shamelessness.

“He had been carefully feeding the hungry ego of the new
president’s secretary of war, Patrick J. Hurley,” noted biographer William
Manchester. “Seeing his chance when Hurley sent the Senate a routine
communication on the Philippines, the General sent him an oleaginous missive:

‘I have just read in
the local papers your letter … and I cannot refrain from expressing to you the
unbounded admiration it has caused me. It is the most comprehensive and
statesmanlike paper that has ever been presented with reference to this complex
and perplexing problem. At one stroke, it has clarified issues which have
perplexed and embarrassed statesmen for the past 30 years. If nothing else had
ever been written on the subject, your treatise would be complete and absolute.
It leaves nothing to be said and has brought confidence and hope out of the
morass of chaos and confusion which has existed in the minds of millions of
people. It is the most statesmanlike utterance that has emanated from the
American Government in many decades and renews in the hearts of many of us our
confirmed faith in American principles and ideals. You have done a great and
courageous piece of work and I am sure that the United States intends even
greater things for you in the future. Please accept my heartiest
congratulations not only for yourself personally but the great nation to which
we both belong.’

“For a while he heard nothing. … But the administration was
giving serious thought to a successor for (Army Chief of Staff Charles P.)
Summerall, who would retire in the fall of 1930, and MacArthur’s name was being
discussed seriously. Hurley had at first balked, arguing that a man who
‘couldn’t hold his woman’ shouldn’t be Chief of Staff. Since then, however,
MacArthur’s remarkable letter had impressed the secretary of war with its
wisdom and insight.”

MacArthur got the appointment he so keenly wanted — but not,
of course, without pretending that he hesitated to take the job. He only
finally and reluctantly accepted the post at the urging of his dear mother, or
so he said.

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Why Odin's ravens?

Perched on the shoulders of the Norse god Odin are the pet ravens Huginn and Muninn, whose names mean “Thought” and “Memory.” At Odin’s bidding, they fly across the face of the world and bring him knowledge. In the 13th century Poetic Edda, Odin reveals that he fears that they may not return from their daily flights. He has pampered his pets by rewarding them with the ability to speak, and it’s truth that they tell, even though the Raven is, of course, a Trickster.

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"This article contains a significant amount of intelligence, analytic fact, common sense and eloquence. If you suffer from a 'freeze-dried' FOX News brain or enjoy a Rush Limbaugh lifestyle of blissful ignorance, avoid reading, as it may be hazardous to your health. A major side effect is thoughtful reflection." — Ian McDonald

Copyright

I love crows and ravens for their wisecracking voices and for that black-on-black gleam of sagacity in their eyes. They figure things out. They see us. They know us for what we are, which is why they keep a wary distance but remind us, with their taunts, that they are not overly impressed.